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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: tear · spell · cold · key · snap · rock · net · wax

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. net — in sport
  5. key — for a lock
  6. spell — letters
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. net — after costs
  9. cold — not warm
  10. spell — magic
  11. tear — from crying
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. rock — a stone
  14. spell — a short time
  15. tear — to rip
  16. wax — to grow
  17. key — in music
  18. net — for catching
  19. cold — an illness
  20. key — the most important part
  21. tear — from crying
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. snap — to click
  24. rock — music

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com